Report: Bengals' Contract Offer to Shemar Stewart 'Lacked' Key Training Camp Roster Bonuses

Bengals first round pick Shemar Stewart didn't do any on-field work during Cincinnati's one-day rookie minicamp on Friday. The 21-year-old remains unsigned.

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the Bengals made a push to sign him before minicamp.

The 17th overall selection spoke with reporters after the one day session.

"I just decided not to sign those papers," Stewart said. "I'm doing everything else. Just like on the field stuff. I'm not doing that."

We may know why Stewart didn't sign his rookie contract.

"Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the Bengals tried to get Stewart signed," Florio wrote. "As we understand it, the talks bogged down regarding the percentage of compensation in future years to be paid as a training-camp roster bonus. The training-camp roster bonus has become a device for putting a sizable chunk of the player’s pay in his pockets in future years, early in the season. In this case, the numbers offered by the Bengals reflected a lower percentage than the 17th overall pick received in 2024."

How do the Bengals get the deal across the finish line?

Well, a simple solution would be to offer Stewart the same percentage of his training camp signing bonus (or more) than what Dallas Turner received from the Vikings in 2024 after Minnesota took him with the 17th overall selection.

It's worth noting that Turner didn't sign his rookie contract until July 21. The Bengals signed first round pick Amarius Mims one day later. Turner and Mims were taken 17th and 18th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, respectively.

It's not surprising to see the Bengals first round pick unsigned in May. Only 11 first round picks have signed their rookie deals as of Monday morning.

Missing a one day rookie minicamp isn't a big deal. Now, if Stewart decides not to participate in the offseason program until he's signed, then this is going to be much more of a story.

Mims participated in the offseason program last year, even though he hadn't signed his rookie deal.

The Bengals are back on the practice field on Monday. They have a practice that's open to the media on Tuesday. This week will be the first time both rookies and veterans are on the practice field together.

Will Stewart participate? What about second round pick Demetrius Knight Jr? Both players didn't participate in rookie minicamp.

Is this another wrinkle that will continue to happen with rookies across the NFL? It's a situation that we'll continue to monitor.

Check out Florio's entire report here.